Inquest aims to stop Sydney Westfield stabbing rampage repeat

The man behind the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing rampage stopped receiving treatment for serious mental health issues years before the terrifying attack, a court has been told.

Joel Cauchi fatally stabbed six people and wounded about a dozen others during the violent spree during Saturday trade at the busy shopping centre in Sydney’s eastern suburbs in April.

An inquest will examine the circumstances of the attack with the aim of stopping a similar tragedy from happening again.

It will look at issues including whether any intervention could have prevented Cauchi’s mental health deteriorating to the extent that it did before the attack, which ended when he was shot dead.

The case reached a courtroom for the first time on Tuesday, when an initial directions hearing received an overview of the many issues at play ahead of the inquest, which is due to be held in April and May 2025.

Ashlee Good, 38, Dawn Singleton, 25, Jade Young, 47, Pikria Darchia, 55, Yixuan Cheng, 27 and 30-year-old security guard Faraz Tahir were killed in the attack.

At least 12 other people were taken to hospital with stab wounds, including a nine-month-old baby who was released following treatment.

NSW Police inspector Amy Scott ended 40-year-old Cauchi’s rampage when she shot him on level five of the complex as shoppers fled.

The court was told Cauchi was receiving treatment for schizophrenia, but from about late-2019 his medication began to be reduced.

Joel Cauchi fatally stabbed six people and wounded about a dozen others in April.

From early 2020 until the time of the attack, he received no treatment at all despite there being evidence of his deteriorating mental health.

NSW State Coroner Teresa O’Sullivan expressed her condolences to the family and loved-ones of those who were killed.

“The events of the 13th of April remain raw and painful for all those that have been impacted,” she said.

Counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer SC said such mass casualty events were rare in Australia and could expose deficiencies or flaws in the systems intended to deal with them.

“When they do happen, they happen quickly and they cause chaos,” she said.

“They provide an opportunity to learn with a view to saving lives … in the future.”

There was significant public interest in how large companies like Scentre Group, which operated the shopping centre, prepared for mass casualty events, Dr Dwyer said.

The evidence was expected to show no alarm sounded within Westfield Bondi Junction until about one minute after Cauchi was shot dead and more than seven minutes after the first victim was attacked, the court was told.

“It’s presently unclear why it took so long for the alarm to sound,”Dwyer said.

The inquest is due to run from April 28 to May 30.